Digitized Content from the Margaret A. King Correspondence | Illinois History and Lincoln Collections

The digitized content of the Margaret A. King Correspondence consists of original correspondence written between February and October 1864, primarily from Margaret A. King, who lived in Warren, Illinois, to her husband Philander B. King, who had moved to Nevada Territory.

Philander and Margaret King were farmers who lived in Warren, Illinois, though Philander moved west to Washoe City, Nevada Territory in 1864 to try to find work in the gold mines. While he was away, Margaret cared for their farm and their children. The Kings moved to the state of Washington in 1902, where Margaret died in 1906 and Philander died in 1907.

The digitized content contains sixteen letters, most of which are from Margaret King to Philander King. In her letters to her husband, Margaret described the difficulties of her life alone on the farm, as well as details such as the weather and the prices of goods. She also wrote about local news from Warren, Illinois, especially news regarding the Civil War. The digitized content also contains letters from Philander to Margaret, which give insight into his life in Washoe City, and letters sent to Philander from his relative J. M. Barber; J. E. Scace; and D. C. Allen.

The Margaret A. King Correspondence was completely digitized in 2018. Items are available online at the University of Illinois Digital Library. A preservation copy of the items is available to IHLC and digital preservation staff at the Library Digital Repository: https://medusa.library.illinois.edu/collections/1379.